Rent Outcast of the Islands (1951)

Superb stuff - Outcast of the Islands review by RP

They don't make them like this any more! Superb acting, excellent dialogue, 'proper' actors, goodies and baddies, black-and-white.

Directed by Carol Reed and based on the Joseph Conrad novel, the film tells the tale of Peter Willems (Trevor Howard) as a downright cad who first cheats his employer, becomes a social outcast, meets up with old friend Captain Tom Lingard (Ralph Richardson) who takes pity on him, and takes him to a remote trading outpost. There he becomes infatuated with a native girl, betrays the trust and friendship of Captain Lingard - and ends up as a total outcast.

Robert Morley, Wendy Hiller, George Coulouris all have excellent parts and even Robert Morley's daughter plays a part. A classic. 5/5 stars - highly recommended.

Colonial psycho-drama (spoiler). - Outcast of the Islands review by Steve

Exotic psychological drama set at the beginning of the twentieth century in the south seas. Ralph Richardson is a shipping merchant and explorer who takes the morally pliable grifter (Trevor Howard) he saves from drowning to a hidden, lucrative trading post on a remote shore. And in this alien environment, the stranger unravels...

It's all about laconic British actors in white suits failing to adapt to the demands of empire. Wendy Hiller's role is mainly to look as out of place as possible as a suburban housewife living in a bamboo hut with the island's wheeler dealer (Robert Morley) and their precocious moppet. Morley eventually gets cooked by the locals.

Howard falls in love with a local beauty (Kerima) but finds he is being played by the indigenous leaders who want to take control of the trade. Carol Reed uses his location shoot to anthropological ends. Which is fascinating if you've never seen these river dwelling communities before. But now we mostly have.

The photography is gorgeous. This is an exceptional production, shot on location in Sri Lanka, which explores human cruelty and corruption and the misguided heroism of empire. It's a compact version of Joseph Conrad's story, but epic in scale. Howard is perfect as the classic Conradian anti-hero, on his journey into the foul human heart.